BAföG für einen Schulbesuch beantragen

You can receive financial support for your school attendance or an internship if your parents do not have a higher income or if you have already worked independently of your parents for a long time. This support is called BAföG.

BAföG is the abbreviation for Federal Training Assistance Act. BAföG is colloquially referred to as the funding that you can receive under this law. You will receive the funding for financing

• your school attendance or
• under certain conditions of a prescribed internship as part of your school attendance.

To receive the monthly grant, you must meet a number of requirements. The most important are:

• Your parents and/or spouse/partner do not have a higher income.
• You yourself have no or only a low income, for example from a "mini-job".
• Your assets are below the allowance of EUR 15,000 up to the age of 30 or EUR 45,000 from the age of 30 or only slightly higher.
• You are aiming for your full-time school leaving certificate.
• Age limit: 45 years (exceptions are possible)

The amount of your BAföG depends on a fixed monthly requirement. Money is deducted from this need if your parents, spouse/partner or yourself earn a little more.

As a student, you will receive the financial support as a grant. You don't have to pay anything back.

In principle, if you want to obtain a vocational qualification or a further school leaving certificate, you can receive BAföG. If you attend a general education school, however, this only applies from grade 10 and only if you cannot live at home (for example, because you cannot complete the desired degree nearby).
The monthly requirement for pupils is:

• if you live with your parents:
  • EUR 421.00 if you attend a technical school class whose attendance requires a completed vocational training, an evening grammar school or a college,
  • EUR 262.00 if you attend a vocational school or a technical school that you can attend without completing vocational training, or
  • EUR 474.00 if you attend an evening secondary school, vocational training school, evening secondary school or technical secondary school class that you can only attend with completed vocational training.
• if you do not live with your parents:
  • A total of EUR 632.00 if you attend a secondary general education school, a vocational school or a technical secondary school that you can attend without completing vocational training, or
  • A total of EUR 736.00 if you attend an evening secondary school, vocational training school, evening secondary school or technical secondary school class that you can only attend with completed vocational training.
• If you have a child under the age of 14 who lives in your household, you will also receive a childcare supplement: EUR 160.00 for each child.

Even if you spend a year abroad during your school years, you can receive BAföG. In the case of a stay abroad, surcharges are granted to the travel costs for the outward and return journey.

The following amounts are credited, i.e. they reduce your BAföG needs:

• The income of your parents and/or your spouse/partner in the penultimate year before the start of the authorisation period if it is higher than the allowance. The allowance is:
  • EUR 2,415 if your parents live together,
  • EUR 1,605 per parent if your parents live separately and
  • EUR 1,605 for a possible spouse/partner.
  • Note: If your parents or spouse/partner are currently earning significantly less than in the penultimate year before approval, you can apply for an update.
  • Parent-independent BAföG: Your parents' income will not be taken into account if you
    • have been employed for five years after reaching the age of 18, or
    • have completed a three-year apprenticeship and have been employed for at least three years thereafter (correspondingly longer employment in the case of shorter training).
    • In certain exceptional cases, if you are over 30 years old at the beginning of the training
• Your own income, as far as it is more than EUR 520.00 per month.
• Your own assets if they are higher than EUR 15,000 by the age of 30 or higher than EUR 45,000 from the age of 30.

Note: The starting point for the income calculation is basically the sum of the positive income. In the law on educational support, this is the gross income less the

• Advertising costs
• Social lump sum and the
• taxes actually paid, including church tax and solidarity surcharge.

Child benefit that your parents receive for you will not be taken into account.

If you attend an evening high school or college, you will receive parent-independent BAföG. That is, the income of your parents is not taken into account in the calculation.

Interns:

BAföG can only be used to support internships that you complete while you are in an apprenticeship that is eligible under BAföG.

Only compulsory internships are funded. These are internships that your training plan prescribes, so you have to do in order to complete or carry out the training. Compulsory traineeships completed outside the EU are only eligible if they last at least 12 weeks. Compulsory internships within the EU Member States can also be funded if they are shorter than twelve weeks.

• Completed application
• Certificate from the school or training centre
• If applicable, copy of the
  • Id
  • Passports or
  • current residence permit
• If you do not live with your parents: copy
  • the rental agreement or
  • the registration certificate
• If you do not have family insurance: proof of health and long-term care insurance with legal basis and amount of contributions
• If necessary, proof of your own income during the approval period, for example
  • Payroll, part-time job, work contract,
  • Orphan's pension notice,
  • Scholarship notice or
  • Riester pension certificate
• Proof of assets or debts on the day of application, for example bank statement
• If you have a car:
  • Estimation of the value, for example printing from a website with a comparable offer, and
  • Motor vehicle registration.

Depending on the case, further documents may be required. Please follow the instructions in the application forms. The BAföG office responsible for you will request missing documents.

• As a pupil or trainee, you attend one of the following types of school:
  • secondary general education and vocational school (including classes of all forms of basic vocational education) from grade 10, if you cannot live with your parents because of your education,
  • Technical and technical secondary school class (without completed vocational training), if you cannot live with your parents,
  • Vocational school class or technical school class (without completed vocational training), if it provides a vocational qualification in at least two years of training,
  • Fach- und Fachoberschulklasse (with completed vocational training),
  • Abendhauptschule, Berufsaufbauschule, Abendrealschule, Abendgymnasium und Kolleg or
  • higher technical college or academy awarding a degree that is not equivalent to a university degree under State law,
  • You attend school full-time.
  • You are a foreigner and for example:
    • have a right of permanent residence or a settlement permit,
    • are union citizens and, as employees or self-employed persons, are entitled to freedom of movement under EU law or are themselves entitled to freedom of movement as the child or spouse of such a Union citizen,
    • have the prospect of staying in Germany, for example a corresponding residence permit for family, humanitarian or political reasons, or
    • have already been in Germany for 5 years or more before the start of the training and have worked during this time.

Note: Since the legal regulation is very complex, you should contact your responsible office for educational support at an early stage.

Internship:

You will receive BAföG for the internship, provided that it is prescribed by the training regulations and lasts at least 12 weeks for an internship outside the EU. For stays abroad within the EU, shorter internships can also be funded.

There are no costs.

If you would like to apply for BAföG for your school education online:

• Register with BAföG Digital and create a "simple" user account.
• Fill in the form data fields online using the application wizard and send your data electronically to the responsible office.
• As an alternative to creating a user account with BAföG Digital, you can also register using the online ID function of your identity card.

If you would like to submit the application in paper form:

• Go to the BAföG website and download the application forms that concern you. Alternatively, you can also collect the applications from your responsible municipal office for educational support.
• You can fill out and print the forms on the computer or print them out and fill them out by hand. You must enter your name at the end of the application form.
• Add the necessary evidence.
• Send the completed application forms with the support documents directly to the office responsible for educational support for you.

The Office for Educational Support checks the documents for completeness. If documents are missing, they will be requested. If the application is complete, it will be examined and the decision will be communicated by decision.

There is no deadline, but BAföG is only granted from the beginning of the training, but at the earliest from the month in which you submit the application. If you submit your application as completely as possible, then your application can usually be decided quickly.

There are the following notes:

Incorrect or incomplete information or the omission of notifications of changes can be prosecuted or punished as an administrative offence with a fine. Amounts unduly paid may be recovered.

They must immediately notify the Training Office in writing of any change in the economic situation and in family and educational circumstances. This includes, for example, if your income changes, you change education, drop out, finish or if your siblings do.

If the conditions are met, the information provided on income or assets can be checked by comparing data with the competent authorities.

• As a rule, objection
• Action before the Administrative Court

• Educational support Permit for pupils
• Financial support for school education in accordance with the Federal Training Assistance Act (BAföG)
• Possible if
  • Parents do not have a high income or the requirements for parent-independent BAföG are met,
  • there is no or only low income and assets of the trainee and
  • Full-time school attendance
• Pupils receive all support in monthly payment installments as a subsidy
• These include pupils
  • Secondary schools from grade 10 as well as technical and technical secondary school classes, if necessary they are accommodated abroad,
  • vocational school classes and technical school classes whose attendance does not require a completed vocational training, which impart a vocational qualification,
  • Technical and technical secondary school classes, the attendance of which requires a completed vocational training,
  • Evening schools,
  • Colleges
  • higher technical colleges as well as
• Internships are only funded if
  • it is a compulsory internship within the curriculum and
  • school attendance is already supported by BAföG.
• Height for pupils depends on
  • 1. according to fixed monthly requirements for
    • cost of living and accommodation,
    • if applicable, costs for health insurance,
    • if applicable, children,
  • 2. according to the income of the applicant and, where applicable, of the parents and/or spouse/partner deducted from the need:
    • Parents' income above the allowance of
      • EUR 2,415 per month if parents live together,
      • EUR 1,605 per month per parent if parents live separately,
    • if applicable, income of a spouse/partner above a monthly allowance of EUR 1,605 and
    • if applicable, own assets, insofar as they are higher than EUR 15,000 up to the age of 30 or higher than EUR 45,000 after the age of 30,
  • 3. according to the type of school.
• BAföG is exceptionally granted independent of parents if
  • applicant has been employed for at least 5 years, or
  • Applicant has been employed for at least three years after three years of training (correspondingly longer employment in the case of shorter training) or
  • attends an evening grammar school or college, or
  • in certain exceptional cases, if the trainee has reached the age of 30 at the beginning of the training period
• In the case of a stay abroad, surcharges are granted for travel expenses
• Funding possible until the end of the training period, thereafter only in exceptional cases
• responsible:
  • Office for Educational Support at your parents' place of residence
  • in certain cases, at the place of residence of the trainees or at the place of the training centre
• in the case of training abroad, the responsible international office

Apprentices at evening grammar schools, colleges, higher technical colleges and academies: Office for Training Support of the City or District Administration at the location of the training centre

Pupils: Office for Educational Support of the City or District Administration at the place of residence of the parents, in exceptional cases at the place of residence of the trainee

Forms available: Yes
Written form required: No
Informal application possible: No
Personal appearance necessary: No

Online services available: Yes